• The technology centre hosted a conference at its headquarters in Vitoria-Gasteiz to discuss the monitoring of forest diseases and tools to improve their detection and tracking 
• The event brought together specialists from Europe, New Zealand, Australia, the United States and South Africa to share experiences on the health issues affecting forests in different regions 
• The event took place as part of the SANA SILVA, Pre-emptive Biosecurity and CATALYST initiatives, which promote cooperation in the field of forest health

 

Maintaining the health of forests requires an understanding of how the diseases affecting them evolve and which conditions may encourage their spread. Red band and brown band are two of the health problems affecting pine trees, which can cause leaf loss, stunted growth and weaken the trees. Added to this is climate change, which is altering environmental conditions and may encourage the emergence and spread of pests and diseases. Improving surveillance and the ability to detect these changes enables us to anticipate potential risks.

Against this backdrop, the NEIKER technology centre – an organisation under the Basque Government’s Department of Food, Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries – brought together specialists from various countries this morning at its headquarters in Arkaute (Vitoria-Gasteiz) to share knowledge and experiences on forest health. During the conference, participants discussed the prevalence of diseases in different regions, surveillance and detection systems, and the tools that can help anticipate new threats.

The meeting took place within the framework of three complementary initiatives in which the centre is involved: SANA SILVA, which focuses on strengthening cooperation and health surveillance in the Pyrenean region; Pre-emptive Biosecurity, which works on preparing for threats before they arrive or become established in new territories; and CATALYST, aimed at developing new tools for the detection and monitoring of forest pathogens.

Cooperation to improve surveillance

Forest health issues can affect different areas, and how they develop in one area can provide useful information for other regions facing the same problem or which may face it in the future. SANA SILVA is based on this need for cooperation and brings together the work carried out in different parts of the Pyrenean region to share knowledge and improve monitoring and management tools.

Within this framework, the work carried out as part of the initiative makes it possible to study the distribution and evolution of forest pathogens across different regions and to compare the situations in each area. This information helps to establish a common knowledge base and to improve the monitoring of forest health issues.

In the Basque Country, one of the pathogens under study is Lecanosticta acicola, a fungus associated with brown streak disease. NEIKER, in collaboration with CIBERESP – the National Centre for Epidemiology at the Carlos III Health Institute – has developed a model to predict the dispersal of its spores under different climate change scenarios. This tool enables the analysis of the risk associated with different environmental conditions and provides information to identify the periods and areas where it may be necessary to step up surveillance.

Anticipating new threats

Surveillance also enables us to prepare for diseases that are not yet present in a given area. This is the approach taken by Pre-emptive Biosecurity, an initiative that seeks to understand how forests respond to potential threats before these threats become established.

“The study provides insight into how different genetic materials respond to a health threat and offers information to help develop future surveillance and management strategies, as well as revealing how owners and the industry perceive the disease and its treatments,” said Eugenia Iturritxa, a researcher in NEIKER’s Department of Forest Sciences.

This exchange brings together the experiences of regions facing different health situations: the Basque Country contributes its expertise in the study and monitoring of Lecanosticta acicola, whilst New Zealand and Australia share their experience in biosecurity and surveillance against organisms that are not yet established in their territories.

This collaboration also extends to the development of new detection tools. Specifically, as part of the CATALYST project, work is being carried out on technologies such as molecular diagnostics, genomic surveillance and biosensors, which can help to identify the presence of pathogens at an earlier stage and improve their monitoring.

The goal of this research is to apply the knowledge gained to forest management. “Information on the presence and distribution of pathogens and on the conditions that favour their development is used to determine where to step up surveillance, when to intensify monitoring and where to focus prevention measures,” concluded Iturritxa.

This process involves research centres, public authorities and stakeholders linked to the forestry sector; their collaboration enables the needs of local areas to be incorporated into the various lines of research and the results to be applied to monitoring and management tools.